IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
THE WORLD IN CRISIS PACE IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies
PACE interventions around the world
Prepared by: Attorney at law. Maria Cecilia Carbón Attanasio
THE WORLD NEEDS HELP… ✔ Our work focuses on creating supportive environments in situations of vulnerability and crisis, whether
caused by natural disasters or human-made catastrophes. ✔ PACE “assists those who assist”, collaborating with professionals in health, education, and community settings who work directly with affected populations. ✔ By addressing emotional experiences and strengthening human bonds during catastrophes, psychoanalytic perspectives help prevent the deepening of traumatic situations. ✔ Psychoanalysis provides essential tools for understanding and intervening effectively in crisis contexts.
PACE works in collaboration with humanitarian organizations worldwide.
“Assisting those who assist”
AFRICA
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
• Mozambique faces significant humanitarian and social challenges, particularly in the northern regions, including armed conflict, terrorist attacks, displacement, HIV, teenage pregnancy, and the presence of child soldiers. •These conditions strongly affect women, children, and adolescents, especially in areas such as Nacala. MOZAMBIQUE
Image Source: Infobae, “Mozambique enfrenta su peor crisis humanitaria en ocho años: ‘La violencia y los asesinatos continúan’,” Nov. 17, 2025. Photo: Europa Press.
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
MOZAMBIQUE
• In 2022, PACE organized a one-year pilot training course titled “ A Psychoanalytic Perspective on Assistance to Children and Adolescents in Humanitarian Crisis Situations ,” aimed at young psychotherapists and psychiatrists. • Since 2023, PACE has continued its collaboration through monthly online work discussion groups in Portuguese with 15 psychotherapists working in northern Mozambique with populations affected by war and terrorism. The project focuses particularly on mothers, babies, young children, and adolescents. •This group, together with other international organizations, is organizing the conference “Children, War, Persecution: Revisiting Wounds, Reinscribing Hope” (Maputo, May 2026), with IPA as a scientific sponsor and PACE as a scientific advisor.
Image Source: Mozambique's Internally Displaced Persons at a community meeting in Tara Tara district. Vatican News. Fr. Bernardo Suate .
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
MOROCCO ● Following the devastating earthquake in the High Atlas region, many communities continue to face the psychological and social consequences of the catastrophe. ● In collaboration with the humanitarian organization High Atlas Foundation , PACE coordinates support for staff and volunteers assisting the affected population. ● A pilot program began in April 2024 with seminars on trauma and emergency interventions. Building on this experience, the IPA–PACE “Education for Workers” program provides theoretical–practical seminars aimed at strengthening the resources of professionals and volunteers working in healthcare, education, and community services so they can better support their communities.
Image Source: Reuters, “One year on, Morocco's quake victims still wait for homes,” Sept. 3, 2024. Photo: Reuters. Available
AMERICA
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
ARGENTINA ● PACE collaborates with ADRA Argentina, supporting refugee families from conflict-affected regions such as Syria and Afghanistan. ● When psychological assistance is required, PACE works with the Racker Centre of the Argentine Psychoanalytic Association (APA) to provide brief psychoanalytic emergency interventions, involving analysts who can work in languages such as Arabic and French. ● Following the floods in Bahía Blanca, the University Institute of Mental Health (IUSAM–APdeBA) invited PACE to present its experience in emergency interventions in May 2025. ● As a result, training seminars on crisis interventions are planned for 2026, with the aim of involving other psychoanalytic societies in Latin America.
Image Source: “People Holding a Globe” (Anna Shvets, Pexels, 2021)
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
BRAZIL ● Following the severe floods that have affected different regions of Brazil in recent years, PACE has been collaborating with SOS Brazil since 2023, providing online supervision groups together with COCAP for professionals delivering brief psychoanalytic interventions to affected communities. ● These meetings take place twice a month and benefit around 50–80 professionals. SOS Brazil is currently preparing its second book on the experience of psychoanalytic care during the floods, including several PACE supervisions. ● PACE has also participated in a pilot program with COWAP , focused on emergency clinical support for women, adolescents, and children in contexts of social violence.
Image Source: Floods in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil (Photo: Amanda Perobelli / Reuters, 2024)
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
UNITED STATES California (Los Angeles) – Wildfires • Wildfires in the Los Angeles area caused widespread evacuations, destruction of homes, and severe environmental damage. Beyond the material losses, these events had a profound psychological impact on affected communities, generating stress, uncertainty, and trauma among residents. • PACE collaborated with the New Center for Psychoanalysis to organize two online seminars on brief psychoanalytic interventions in emergencies and a work discussion group. These activities were open to professionals from the region and internationally, with around 150 participants.
Image source: Swope, E. (AP Photo). “Health, Housing and the Path Ahead: UC Berkeley Researchers on the Los Angeles Fires.” UC Berkeley News, 10 January 2025 .
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
UNITED STATES
Texas – Floods • Severe flooding in Texas caused extensive damage to homes and infrastructure, forcing many families to evacuate and disrupting daily life across the region. • PACE established contact with the Houston Psychoanalytic Society to provide specialized bibliography and guidance on intervention strategies, supporting professionals assisting the affected population.
Image source: Garcia, E. (Reuters). Drone view of flooding damage near the Guadalupe River, Hunt, Texas. 7 July 2025.
ASIA
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
MIDDLE EAST CRISIS • The war in the Middle East following the Hamas attack on Israel has generated a major humanitarian crisis, with widespread violence, many victims, and the displacement of millions of people in the region. • As Israel organized its own assistance, PACE has focused on establishing links with Palestinian colleagues and professionals in countries affected by the crisis. Despite the difficulties posed by the humanitarian situation. • PACE has held meetings and maintained contact with international organizations that have access to the region, such as the International Red Cross and Doctors without Borders , while promoting training, guidance, and support for professionals providing aid.
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
EGYPT • As the war in Gaza continues, Egypt has become an important destination for people fleeing the conflict. The arrival of displaced families—many of them women and children—has increased humanitarian and mental-health needs among refugee populations and the professionals assisting them. • PACE is working to establish collaboration with a group of young psychiatrists with a psychoanalytic orientation who assist refugees from Gaza. The initiative focuses on sharing intervention strategies, particularly through work discussion groups.
Image source: Imad, H. (EFE-EPA). Displaced Palestinians in Rafah near the border with Egypt. El País , 16 February 2024.
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
TURKEY • The 2023 earthquake in Turkey caused widespread destruction, leaving thousands of victims and displaced families and generating significant psychological impact on affected communities. • PACE established contact with psychoanalytic societies in Istanbul, sharing resources on psychoanalytic work in crisis situations and organizing Work Discussion and Reflection Groups for candidates. • These spaces support reflection on clinical experiences after the disaster and have inspired a small local initiative based on the PACE model.
Image source: Seco, F. (AP Photo). Rescue operations continue one week after the devastating earthquake in southern Turkey. La Nación, 13 February 2023
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
MALAYSIA ● In Kuala Lumpur, current climate-related disasters are primarily linked to the increasing intensity of extreme weather events associated with climate change. The city faces increasingly severe monsoon rains, leading to recurrent flash floods that impact densely populated urban areas, causing evacuations, transportation disruptions, and material damage. ● PACE has established a collaboration with the Kuala Lumpur Psychoanalytic Group , aimed at strengthening crisis intervention capacities through targeted training and specialized programs for professionals working in Kuala Lumpur.
Image source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). (2025, November 24). Floods hit seven Malaysian states, displacing thousands.
EUROPE
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
UKRAINE War in Ukraine • PACE supports Ukrainian mental health professionals through clinical supervision and work discussion groups, in collaboration with COCAP, the Ukrainian Psychoanalytic Society, and APPU. • The program includes several groups across different settings (schools, hospitals, and social support centers), involving around 50 professionals working in war-affected and refugee contexts. • Meetings are held online every two weeks, with volunteer translators facilitating communication and allowing participants to share clinical experiences in their own language.
Image Source: CNN, “This is how the war in Ukraine has unfolded” , February 23, 2023 .
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
RUSSIA Support for Russian Refugees
● PACE also expresses its solidarity with individuals affected by displacement as a result of the war, including Russian refugees. In line with its clinical and humanitarian mission, PACE supports initiatives that provide psychological assistance to those experiencing the emotional impact of conflict and forced migration. ● In Argentina, psychoanalytic professionals have organized brief psychoanalytic interventions to offer psychological support to Russian refugees.
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
SPAIN ● Following the devastating floods caused by the 2024 DANA in the province of Valencia, the population faced severe trauma and loss. ● The Psychoanalytic Association of Madrid organized the initiative “Attention to Emergency and Catastrophic Situations.” In collaboration with PACE, the team established contacts with institutions in Spain to facilitate psychoanalytic interventions. ● Analysts and candidates from Valencia, together with the Psychoanalytic Association of Madrid, provided Brief Psychoanalytic Interventions in emergency settings to support the affected population, guided by PACE. ● Monthly online clinical supervisions were conducted from the beginning of the catastrophe.
Image Source: Página/12, “Dramatic Storm and Flooding in Spain: More Than 92 Dead in Valencia and Dozens Missing,” Oct. 30, 2024.
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
ITALY ● PACE has met with the President of the Italian Psychoanalytic Society to explore collaboration and organize joint interventions providing psychological assistance to populations affected by conflict. ● Particular attention has been given to Palestinian children from Gaza receiving medical treatment in Italian hospitals. ● PACE has also supported humanitarian initiatives in Italy and Argentina, offering psychological assistance to Syrian and Afghan families in collaboration with ADRA .
Image Source: Euronews , “Italy offers to help stabilise and rebuild Gaza,” Oct. 16, 2025. Photo: AP Photo / Abdel Kareem Hana.
● IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies - PACE
“PACE: Promoting psychological well-being through global humanitarian support, professional collaboration, and emergency intervention.”
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COMMITTEE MEMBERS
● Mónica Cardenal, Chair (Buenos Aires). ● Gianna Williams, Consultant (Londres). ● Susana Maldonado, IPSO (Ciudad de Mexico). ● Simona Nissim, Co-Chair, EU (Pissa). ● Julieta Paglini, Co-Chair, LA (Córdoba). ● Alejandro Nagy, Co-Chair, North (Los Angeles). ● Darren Thompson, Member (Vancouver). ● Silvia De Egea, Member (Asunción). ● Wania Cidade, Member (Rio de Janeiro). ● Mercedes Puchol, Member (Madrid). ● Thomas Jung, Member (Vienna). ● Banu Ismail, Member (Asia-Pacific, Bombay)
PACE IPA Committee on Psychoanalytic Assistance in Crises and Emergencies
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